Ok....advice for PC upgrade?

[The Fifth Horseman]

Since you're taking a H97 mobo, I'd suggest taking advantage of the recent Haswell Refresh processors - i5 4590 would still be in your budget , for $9 more than i5 4570 you get a slightly higher clock speed and better thermal medium between the core and IHS (= theoretically slightly better operating temperatures ).

Also worth noting: your motherboard supports Intel Smart Response Technology. That means you can configure an SSD to act as a cache for the HDD, potentially splitting its capacity to use part for caching (IIRC up to 64 GB) and the rest to install your OS on.
Since you've got the mobo and an SSD on your shopping list, remember to make sure it's configured before you install the OS. :)

[Fridgy Daiere]

I could only find reference to the improved TIM on the K series of Haswell CPUs, but it doesn't really matter since non-Ks aren't bought for overclocking purposes, anyway.   :)  This is my first time with an Intel processor or an ssd, so thank you for both suggestions!

[The Fifth Horseman]

I could only find reference to the improved TIM on the K series of Haswell CPUs, but it doesn't really matter since non-Ks aren't bought for overclocking purposes, anyway.   :)

Far as I know, all Haswell Refresh CPUs are supposed to have it. Overclocking or not, better heat dissipation is always a plus IMO. :)

[microc]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817438026&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=
gold unit with 10 year warranty fully modular unit and 100w more power to keep the rig from crashing during long gaming. also put in a after market cooler. the intel stock cooler or cheap ones with the plastic legs can sometime not clip in tight to the cpu or snap off real easy or walk out when the plastic streches from thermal cycling. better cooler use a back plate and screws.

[FatherXmas]

Since CoH went bye-bye I mostly got out of the PC building consulting business.  I do chime in over on the GW2 tech forum to try and explain why some players uber FX-8350 octo core does so poorly compared to an Intel i3 dual core with HT but not with part lists.

That said I have been introduced to PCPartsPicker as a means of presenting builds.

http://pcpartpicker.com/

I can still point people to the builds on Tech Report and Tom's Hardware.

http://techreport.com/review/26463/system-guide-current

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/pc-system-build-value-compared,3859.html

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107.html

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-review-overclock,3106.html

and I recently heard of this site for a gaming oriented review of current CPU offerings.

http://iyd.kr/665